I'm a Freelance Writer and I Love Grammarly And I don't care who knows it!
By BIZ Experiences Deals Edited by Jason Fell
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This article was written by Nick Perry — contributor to the BIZ Experiences Deals and freelance writer on subjects as diverse as artificial intelligence and restaurant operations. He uses Grammarly every day.
When I started my freelance writing career five years ago, it was a side hustle. I wrote script coverage for a talent management company, blogs for an AI platform, and took on all manners of ghostwriting work. I wore a lot of hats and I discovered that I could write fast and meet deadlines easily enough but I wasn't exactly swimming in assignments.
I learned the hard way that the real work for professional writers isn't writing; it's editing. Editors don't want to work with someone who delivers shoddy, unpolished work. They don't tell you this, they just stop sending you work. I noticed that my side hustle was drying up until, one day, I received a trial to Grammarly's Premium plan through work.
During that trial, I diagnosed a lifetime's worth of bad habits, caught an embarrassing number of typos, and realized I loved the word "excellent" way too much. Grammarly goes well beyond spellcheck to identify grammar and syntax errors, analyze readability, and help you write more concisely and compellingly. I bought the Premium version.
Shortly after, and I swear these things aren't related, I began freelancing full-time. Grammarly is by far the most important tool in my workflow. (I would say Google Docs but Grammarly is in Google Docs now!) With Grammarly, I can edit as I go because it identifies typos, spelling errors, grammatical mistakes, awkward phrasing, and much more in real time.
When I write, "Irregardless," Grammarly tells me, "Nick, that's not a real word, just something New Englanders insist on making a thing. You can't use that in a professional setting." (OK, so it's not that specific, but the sentiment is the same.)
Grammarly helps me save time by editing my work as I work. It cuts down on the time I spend proofreading, which lets me spend more time researching, fact-checking, and conveying ideas correctly the first time. It has drastically reduced the back and forth between editors. My first drafts are better, which makes my second drafts better, which ensures my bills are always paid.
If you're a writer — or if you write anything at all — I'd recommend Grammarly. Nobody wants to be the person who writes illiterate, typo-laden emails. And if your writing is directly tied to your income, Grammarly will be your best friend.
